--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We were young. We were bored. And the old…" description: "\"We were young. We were bored. And the old electroshock therapy machine was just under the stairs in a box next to the Hoover.\" — Augusten Burroughs" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/320/augusten-burroughs-603_bored_we-were-young-we-were-bored-and-the-old_584273.png" --- # We were young. We were bored. And the old electroshock… ![“We were young. We were bored. And the old electroshock therapy machine was just under the stairs in a box next to the Hoover.” quote by Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/320/augusten-burroughs-603_bored_we-were-young-we-were-bored-and-the-old_584273.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/320/augusten-burroughs-603_bored_we-were-young-we-were-bored-and-the-old_584273.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/320/augusten-burroughs-603_bored_we-were-young-we-were-bored-and-the-old_584273.png) > “We were young. We were bored. And the old electroshock therapy machine was just under the stairs in a box next to the Hoover.” [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Youthful boredom leads to risky, self‑destructive coping mechanisms. **In simple terms:** Bored youth may turn to dangerous habits. Key Takeaway Seek healthier outlets for restlessness. Themes boredom risk self‑destruction Mood reflective cautious Type personal cautionary When to use this quote - teen rebellion - mental health - substance use - creative expression Key Concepts psychology coping strategies Questions to Reflect On - What healthier activities could replace risky coping? - How does boredom influence decision making? A Different Perspective The quote romanticizes reckless behavior, ignoring consequences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bored/) [Bored Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bored-old-2702688/) [Boxes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boxes/) [Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hoover/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Mental health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-health/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Old Electroshock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-electroshock-4796233/) [Stairs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stairs/) [Therapy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/therapy/) [Therapy Machine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/therapy-machine-4796234/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Young Bored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-bored-4263946/) ## Related quotes > [I quit when I was 52, and everybody was telling me that I was too young and I'd be bored - all of those things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darrell-royal/i-quit-when-i-was-52-and-everybody-was-telling-me-that-i-was-too/) [Darrell Royal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darrell-royal/) > [I get bored with the same old film coming out every weekend. It feels like it's the same story all the time, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-hartnett/i-get-bored-with-the-same-old-film-coming-out-every-weekend-it-feels/) [Josh Hartnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-hartnett/) > [Give me the new thing and give it to me now. I don't want that old thing - I've seen it, heard it, bought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-smith/give-me-the-new-thing-and-give-it-to-me-now-i-don-t-want-that-old/) [Arthur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-smith/) > [The person who works and is never bored is never old. Work and interest in worthwhile things are the best remedy for age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-casals/the-person-who-works-and-is-never-bored-is-never-old-work-and/) [Pablo Casals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-casals/) > [If Congress is going to investigate baseball players about whether or not they told the truth, how can we justify giving the most powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-congress-is-going-to-investigate-baseball-players-about-whether-or/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [By 1967, J. Edgar Hoover had concluded that the Black Panther Party had replaced the Communist Party as the gravest threat to national security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-cockburn/by-1967-j-edgar-hoover-had-concluded-that-the-black-panther-party-had/) [Alexander Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-cockburn/) > [Why was there so much work-sharing in the 1930s? One reason is that government pushed for it. In his memoirs, President Herbert Hoover estimated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-eichengreen/why-was-there-so-much-work-sharing-in-the-1930s-one-reason-is-that/) [Barry Eichengreen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-eichengreen/) > [There was one moment when J. Edgar Hoover and us had the same distorted lens about who we were - "a real threat," you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-ayers/there-was-one-moment-when-j-edgar-hoover-and-us-had-the-same/) [Bill Ayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-ayers/) > [ \[ J. Edgar\]Hoover, I'm sure, felt that he was right in everything he did and even the things that we don't like about his… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/j-edgar-hoover-i-m-sure-felt-that-he-was-right-in-everything-he-did/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) > [Hoover also loved new media the way Millennials do now. He was the first person to ever appear on television. As commerce secretary, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-hoover/hoover-also-loved-new-media-the-way-millennials-do-now-he-was-the/) [Margaret Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-hoover/) > [I recommend my students not to be professional unless they really have to be. I tell them, 'If you love music, sell Hoovers or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fripp/i-recommend-my-students-not-to-be-professional-unless-they-really/) [Robert Fripp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fripp/) > [The only President who clearly died of overwork was Polk, and that was a long time ago. Hoover, who worked intensely and humorlessly as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/the-only-president-who-clearly-died-of-overwork-was-polk-and-that-was/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [While we women dilly-dally, making decisions, leaving jobs half done, forgetting where we've put the house keys while we water the Hoover and leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariella-frostrup/while-we-women-dilly-dally-making-decisions-leaving-jobs-half-done/) [Mariella Frostrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariella-frostrup/) > [You know, back in the 1950s and '60s, when J. Edgar Hoover was making the FBI the respected organization it used to be, oftentimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howie-carr/you-know-back-in-the-1950s-and-60s-when-j-edgar-hoover-was-making-the/) [Howie Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howie-carr/) > [I met Mr. Hoover socially. I never talked to him about anything connected with his work. We just met him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sherman-cooper/i-met-mr-hoover-socially-i-never-talked-to-him-about-anything/) [John Sherman Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sherman-cooper/) ## More by Augusten Burroughs > [There is nothing about myself that I wouldn't reveal or write about. I don't care how horrendous or ridiculous I may appear in person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/there-is-nothing-about-myself-that-i-wouldn-t-reveal-or-write-about-i/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“We were alone together, we were an us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/we-were-alone-together-we-were-an-us/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [Like every child, I adored her. Until I formed a brain and got to know her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/like-every-child-i-adored-her-until-i-formed-a-brain-and-got-to-know/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“You must hang onto the scraps of the bucking moment as if your sanity and life depended on it - because actually they do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/you-must-hang-onto-the-scraps-of-the-bucking-moment-as-if-your-sanity/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [Real optimism is not the pep talk you give yourself. It is earned through the labor involved in emotional housekeeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/real-optimism-is-not-the-pep-talk-you-give-yourself-it-is-earned/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [If you hate your life, you haven't' seen enough of it. If you hate your life, it's because your life is too small and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/if-you-hate-your-life-you-haven-t-seen-enough-of-it-if-you-hate-your/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [I think writers tend to be experience junkies, and I think they also tend to want to be on the outside looking in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-think-writers-tend-to-be-experience-junkies-and-i-think-they-also/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [I think part of the reason I'm attracted to Foster is because he's such a mess. I mean, the people I have loved in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-think-part-of-the-reason-i-m-attracted-to-foster-is-because-he-s/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“On typical days, (dust) is simply irritating. On Roid Rage days, it made me want to stomp down to the highway, pull drivers out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/on-typical-days-dust-is-simply-irritating-on-roid-rage-days-it-made/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [I'm like the guy who prepares your taxes or a dentist. I'm very conservative and boring in a lot of ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-m-like-the-guy-who-prepares-your-taxes-or-a-dentist-i-m-very/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“Nothing surprises me now," I tell him. I am stoic. I am Joan of Arc, with liver damage and an unused penis.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/nothing-surprises-me-now-i-tell-him-i-am-stoic-i-am-joan-of-arc-with/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“It's not that I was an outright nitwit of a child.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/it-s-not-that-i-was-an-outright-nitwit-of-a-child/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [What I really want is to sit next to someone under an L.L. bean blanket on the beach in the fall and drink coffee…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/what-i-really-want-is-to-sit-next-to-someone-under-an-l-l-bean/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“My worth depended on where exactly the decimal was placed among the zeroes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/my-worth-depended-on-where-exactly-the-decimal-was-placed-among-the/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“Bookman isn't a stable man. He has a lot of problems that run very, very deep." But he was really good at giving head.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/bookman-isn-t-a-stable-man-he-has-a-lot-of-problems-that-run-very/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) [Explore all 448 Augusten Burroughs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) ## More Bored quotes > [Normal is so Boring!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/normal-is-so-boring/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If you're focused, you can't get bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alin-sav/if-you-re-focused-you-can-t-get-bored/) [Alin Sav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alin-sav/) > [I am fairly tired--bored beyond endurance--by the world we live in, and its ideals, and am ready to say so, not violently, but kindly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/i-am-fairly-tired-bored-beyond-endurance-by-the-world-we-live-in-and/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [Being blonde, for me, means never having to say: 'I'll have the honey-striped half-head of highlights for £200,' to a bored colourist in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-johnson/being-blonde-for-me-means-never-having-to-say-i-ll-have-the-honey/) [Rachel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-johnson/) > [Someone else who liked what I did might turn around and say, "She's reworking and rethinking everything. She could just be making blankets now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracey-emin/someone-else-who-liked-what-i-did-might-turn-around-and-say-she-s/) [Tracey Emin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracey-emin/) > [ There was another reason \[she\] took her books whenever they went away. They were her home when she was somewhere strange. They were familiar… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/there-was-another-reason-she-took-her-books-whenever-they-went-away/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [I'm bored of being bored because being bored is very boring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sachithra/i-m-bored-of-being-bored-because-being-bored-is-very-boring/) [Sachithra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sachithra/) > [When I get bored I say fck the police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-get-bored-i-say-fck-the-police/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I always knew that I was kind of bored; the regular life of a child didn't fit me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-ricci/i-always-knew-that-i-was-kind-of-bored-the-regular-life-of-a-child/) [Christina Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-ricci/) > [The only activity a cynic will find contagious is yawning, that is, with other people, at other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-only-activity-a-cynic-will-find-contagious-is-yawning-that-is/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [When people look in the mirror, sometimes they see are their shells in the mirror, nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-people-look-in-the-mirror-sometimes-they-see-are-their-shells-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was taking all prints and I brought them to the Magnum meetings, trying the old Josef Koudelka trick: Give them to photographers, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-van-agtmael/i-was-taking-all-prints-and-i-brought-them-to-the-magnum-meetings/) [Peter van Agtmael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-van-agtmael/) > [“She wouldn't pick up a fight him just because she was bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/she-wouldn-t-pick-up-a-fight-him-just-because-she-was-bored/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [...sometimes I get tired. Sometimes I get bored. And sometimes all I want, more than anything else in the world, is to go on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/sometimes-i-get-tired-sometimes-i-get-bored-and-sometimes-all-i-want/) [Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/) > [I was sober for five years a long time ago and was just bored out of my tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sheen/i-was-sober-for-five-years-a-long-time-ago-and-was-just-bored-out-of/) [Charlie Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sheen/) [Browse all 2,067 Bored quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bored/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We were young. We were bored. 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